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Marlee's funeral program did not mention her married name or her husband

Social media posts from across the country paid tribute to her memory.

Marlee Jones Barnhill(Photo: Carroll County Sheriff's Office)

Marlee Jones Barnhill is being remembered for her smile, her love of makeup and joyful personality by her friends on social media.

The Winona nurse, a victim in a triple homicide in Carroll County, was shot and killed at a party on Friday, a day before her 27th birthday.

The Carroll County sheriff says her husband has been charged with killing Barnhill and a couple that they were friends with, Brooks Harrell and Jim Harrell. The Harrells were shot when they tried to come to the wife's aid, he said.

State Rep. Karl Oliver, R-Winona, told the Clarion Ledger he's close with Barnhill's parents and has known her since she was a little girl.

"She was just a young lady who dedicated her life to helping others," Oliver said. "She had a sweet personality, just a precious soul."

Oliver said he was in Winona for Barnhill's funeral service on Wednesday afternoon.

"Everyone is just in shock and reeling in grief and grieving, of course, for their family," he said. "...We're a small and close-knit community. When something happens to one of us, it happens to all of us."

The lawmaker said he did not know the other victims personally.

"Our hearts go out to their families also," he said.

Throughout the week, hundreds of people have expressed shock and grief at the news of the triple homicide.

"Marlee's smile was infectious. She touched the lives of her patients and coworkers with kindness and joy that will never be forgotten," Tyler Holmes Memorial Hospital, Barnhill's employer, posted to its Facebook page. "Our THMH Family was blessed to have had her on our team. Many prayers and much love to her family!"

Barnhill also sold beauty products for Younique, a makeup company. She posted makeup tutorials and promoted the brand through her page, "Get Glamorous with Marlee."

Other representatives for the brand dedicated their makeup tutorials to Barnhill.

Makeup videos offer glimpse into life

"She was a beautiful girl with such a bright spirit," one woman wrote. "Her favorite color was pink so in honor of her let's do a pink look. Fly high baby girl, gone but certainly never forgotten."

Watching Barnhill's videos offers a glimpse into her life. When people popped into her makeup live streams, she often greeted them by name in a sing-song voice. Barnhill talked about the makeup, her life and asked others to share their own thoughts and feelings.

A funeral service was held Wednesday at First Baptist Church in Winona, a church representative confirmed.

Her funeral program said Barnhill was born in Grenada and graduated from Winona Christian School in 2010. Four years later, she graduated from Holmes Community College.

"Marlee was a beautiful soul and always smiling. She loved her family; her dog, Bella; Younique Makeup; and 'Going Live' with her makeup videos," the program said.

Neither the last name she took when she married her husband, nor any mention of him, appears on the program.

What happened at party that night

Michael Martin Barnhill, 30, was charged with three counts of homicide and two counts of attempted murder. He is being held without bond at the Carroll Montgomery Regional Correctional Facility until trial, said Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker.

Walker said the Harrells invited the Barnhills and other friends to their house on Friday night to celebrate Marlee Barnhill's upcoming birthday. The suspect became increasingly drunk and belligerent throughout the night, he said.

Brooks and Jim Harrell(Photo: Carroll County Sheriff's Office)

His wife held the keys to their truck to prevent him from driving drunk. He went out to the vehicle and came back with a .40 caliber pistol, Walker said. The suspect allegedly shot his wife in the chest and two other friends when they tried to come to her aid.

Two other women at the party barricaded themselves in a locked closet with a 10-year-old child who was also in the house, he said.

When sheriff's deputies first interacted with the suspect, he pretended as if he didn't know what had happened, Walker said. The surviving witnesses told deputies the husband was the one who killed their friends.

The suspect attempted to flee and deputies, after a brief struggle, subdued him with a taser.